Do you want to market your products on a larger social media platform? YouTube should be your next stop. With more than 30 million daily active users, it offers companies the opportunity to market their products to a wider audience.
Before you investigate why and how you can market your products on YouTube, here are statistics to help you understand why the platform is great for business:
- YouTube is the second largest website in the world with more than a billion registered subscribersUsers watch a billion hours of video on YouTube every day
- It is easier to reach people aged 18-34 through YouTube than through any other platform
- YouTube reaches 18- to 49-year-olds via mobile phone and not via a cable TV network
The statistics reflect the need for YouTube marketing for small businesses. But where do you start? Here is a guide to help you:
A. Why you should market on YouTube
Video marketing is all the rage
Videos rank higher than other forms of content in terms of engagement, and YouTube provides a platform for you to create videos tailored to your audience to increase reach. In addition, you can embed the videos in blog posts, landing pages, marketing campaigns and other social media platforms you use.
YouTube is popular
Apart from being the second largest search site, YouTube is the second most popular search engine in the world. This only shows the enormous potential that the company offers in terms of reach.
A diverse audience
YouTube has a large and diverse audience that uses Google's search engine and YouTube to find content. Companies can take advantage of this feature by optimizing their videos with the right keywords to increase their chances of connecting with the right audience.
B. How to create a YouTube marketing strategy
Step 1: Create a YouTube channel for the company
The first step is to create a YouTube channel for your business by opening a branded account with Google. The account allows multiple authorized Google Accounts to sign in at the same time, unlike the regular Google Account, which allows only one person to sign in. By creating a channel for your business, you'll be recognized more quickly as an authority. These tips are also helpful when creating the channel:
- Choose the art with care: When you create a channel, you must select two images. The first is the image of the account and the second is the art of the channel that will be displayed on your channel. Be careful to select the images carefully as they are the first features that users notice about your brand.
- Include contact information and links to your website: The main goal of YouTube marketing is to direct potential customers to your website and other social media platforms. Therefore you should include a link to all these platforms. It will appear in the bottom right-hand section of your channel type to make it visible
- Enclose a description:A well-written description of the YouTube channel explains why users should view your content. It should provide a background to your business and explain details that are not in the video.
- Create a featured video: All channels should have video. In the video you can choose how you want to present yourself, as the description does not appear on the first page.
Step 2: Learn more about your target audience
YouTube channels for businesses have an analysis tab that contains statistics about your channel. You can use the statistics to gain insight into your audience's behavior, average viewing time, number of views, and interaction rate. You can also obtain data about your subscribers' demographics to help you determine what you are looking for:
- The age of your audience
- The types of videos that are viewed and when
- The gender of your audience
Such data helps to confirm whether the assumptions about your subscribers are correct. If they are not, analyze the data to determine how you can customize your content to reach your target audience. The data may also show that your products are appealing to an unexpected audience. This is valuable information that your marketing team can use to improve products and content.
In addition to quantitative data, you also need to collect qualitative data about your audience. This means going through comments, which is not always exciting. However, the information found here is crucial for developing effective YouTube marketing strategies.
Step 3:Develop a marketing strategy
Like any other marketing initiative, you must have a plan. Start by defining your goals; in this case, you want to market your products to increase sales. They should be specific, relevant, time-bound and measurable. It would be helpful if you also set performance metrics to evaluate the progress made.
Note that YouTube, unlike other social media platforms, is a content marketing platform and not a social media marketing platform. This is because users watch videos without necessarily sharing their thoughts. Also, people are more likely to find your videos when they watch or search for related content. In contrast, other social media sites allow users to find content through ads or by following you. Marketers should consider these ideals when developing a YouTube marketing plan and defining its goals.
Step four:Identify the most effective type of marketing video
YouTube allows content creators to create different types of videos; it's up to you to choose one that will help you achieve your marketing goals. Make sure you keep things varied to entertain your audience as much as possible. Also experiment with different types of videos early on to understand what works best. The most common types of video content include
- Promotional Videos: :Sometimes promo videos come along as TV commercial style videos, but they are not. A well-designed promo video can drive conversion; it all depends on how you deliver your content. Consider essential elements such as movement, personal commitment, an irresistible offer, CTA, value, curiosity to captivate your audience.
- Instructions for videos: The premise for this type of video is to show how users benefit from your product. Instructional videos are exceptionally powerful because they are not only about presenting your products to users, but also about adding value.
- Videos based on interviews: Invite an industry expert to your station and film the discussion. The topic of the discussion should be relevant to your products. You can also interview your employees and explain how they manufacture the products you sell. One of the best qualities of interview content is that it is natural, authentic and unwritten, and gives your brand a human touch.
- Stamp:They are a popular content format used in blogs, infographics and videos. Consider creating videos that explain the benefits of using your product or service. They can be informative, educational, or entertaining.
- Product Videos:This type explains the different characteristics of a product or service. It may also include current upgrades or new offers
- User-generated content:This type of video shows a fan using your product or service. The creation could prove to be difficult because you will rely on your fans to create the videos.
Step 5:Create a schedule
Consistency is essential in YouTube marketing for small businesses. By regularly creating and publishing content, your channel feed stays active and helps build audience and increase your presence on the platform. While a weekly video should be enough, the right amount of content depends on your goals, your audience and the type of videos you post.
An easy way to create a steady stream of content is to publish shorter versions of long-form content. Start by creating a topic on a theme and publishing short versions of the theme every week. This approach keeps your audience engaged and loyal.
It would also be helpful if you could determine the best time to publish the videos. Most viewers watch the videos on weekends and evenings, so you might want to post the videos in the early afternoon or on Saturday or Sunday morning.
Step 6:Optimize your videos for SEO
Although great content is crucial to the rating of YouTube videos, this is not the only deciding factor. Content creators need to optimize videos for search if they want to get the most out of them, let alone market their products. Several factors come into play when optimizing video content for search:
- The title: It should contain relevant keywords, refer to the topic and have the recommended number of characters (70). However, you can use 60 or fewer characters to avoid truncating some words on search pages. Avoid the use of clickbaits, as they will only scare off your audience; use keywords that contain standard search terms instead to attract more clicks
- The Thumbnailt:When selecting a still image, choose a captivating image to make your content stand out. Consider adjusting the image to attract more viewers.
- Video description:The video should include a short explanation of the topic and links to your social media accounts and website. Make sure to use as many hashtags as possible when writing the description.
- Clock Time:The time your videos are viewed also affects the ranking. The longer the time, the higher the ranking
- Hashtags:They make it easy for you to find your videos. Research to find the most relevant tags and use a few instead of an exhaustive list. For example, videos that have more than 15 hash tags are more likely to be ignored.
- Self-commitment:How many people have liked, commented or shared your videos. The level of engagement of a channel also influences the rank
- Advertisements, maps, watermarks: All these functions are clickable CTAs that you can add to a video. They are more effective than traditional CTAs because they do not interfere with the viewer's experience.
Step 7: Optimize your channel
The optimization applies not only to videos, but also to your channel. It requires creating a consistent experience to attract more viewers and ultimately convert viewers into subscribers or buyers. Learn how to do it here:
- Fill out your profile:Make sure that all information is filled in (keyword biography, contact information, banner image, link to a website). Make sure you add a list of featured channels to give your viewers access to other resources that might be of interest to them.
- Translate the videos into different languages:You will be surprised to learn that most YouTube channel views are made up of viewers who live outside the country of the creator. So when you translate your content into different languages, your reach expands significantly. Since the process of translating content is costly and time-consuming, it would be helpful if you could use crowdsource-free translations from your fan base. When you first try this feature, start with one video at a time.
- Organize your videos into playlists:With a playlist, you can keep viewers on your channel for a long time, which increases the average viewing time. When creating the playlist, keep a logical sequence of ideas in mind. You can create it using your videos or a partner's videos.
Step 8:Look for tools to help you manage your channel
Engagement is a critical aspect of getting the right audience and converting leads into sales. Your ability to actively engage your audience maximizes your marketing efforts and sets you apart from the competition. But as your channel grows, responding to audience comments, questions and suggestions can be overwhelming.
Several tools have been developed to help marketers automate the process of managing their YouTube channels. Agorapulse is one such tool that allows you to review and respond to user comments from a social inbox and monitor the platform for mention of your brand in comments and videos. You can also connect this social media management tool to CRM software to determine if you have previously interacted with the user.
vidIQ is another useful tool that helps you manage comments and allows you to work with multiple team members. Each member is assigned a role and access to the software, making it easy to set up a smooth workflow.
YouTube marketing success
Video content is an excellent addition to the marketing strategy of any company. YouTube is undoubtedly the best platform to showcase such content, as it is the number one video sharing platform. The points discussed are designed to help marketers succeed in YouTube marketing for small businesses. Make sure you strategically plan your presence in advance and schedule your videos so that you regularly publish new content.
